How this didn't end in mayhem I don't know... NAPA 2.25 ton floorjack, always been a great workhorse, just wandering around the garage stretching and for no reason decided to step on the lifting puck... and it sank about a half-inch, and stopped with a 'clunk'.

 

A step on it a few times looking at various bits and I see the solid metal box at the rear that forms the tank and takes all the force from the bottom of the bottle jack cylinder 'pops out' from behind the welded metal plate that actually transmits the force to the side plates.

 

Thought it was welded together, turns out there is a big bolt that's loose, completly invisible from above as it's tucked under the top if the caster mount. It let the side plate move away from the tank, allowing the tank to pop out from behind the backstop.

 

I've had this jack up on the bench to fix the little gear that operates the valve, have never even seen this bolt before.

 

Easy fix, but had that bolt backed out sufficiently, a jacking operation down the line would have been far too interesting.

 

Just had the engine cross member 3 feet in the air a month ago with this jack...

Scary moment for sure.  A nice reminder to all-inspect your tools and equipment on a regular basis!  I check my service lift weekly and my engine hoist with each use for this very reason.  Either would kill me and often I am in my shop alone so I wouldn't have help to get out from under it if I was in trouble.  For this very reason I also don't allow any alcohol in my shop-on top of it being a business but also for safety reasons.

It's also a good remineder of why you always use jack stands and have someone else around when your under a car.

I never get under the jack, some rules do not get bent!

 

But, I am almost always alone and the phone out of reach when working on the car.

Yea, I've actually had a car come down on me - NOT fun. Luckily I was just working on some axles. I had the car on jack stands and one of them slid out of its lock and fell all the way down to home.  A hammer saved my leg.. and held the bit of my car up long enough for me to jump out of the way. Bent the crap out of the hammer lol I got a picture around here somewhere of it.. Still have the hammer too!

 

 

-Justin

Yea, I've actually had a car come down on me - NOT fun. Luckily I was just working on some axles. I had the car on jack stands and one of them slid out of its lock and fell all the way down to home.  A hammer saved my leg.. and held the bit of my car up long enough for me to jump out of the way. Bent the crap out of the hammer lol I got a picture around here somewhere of it.. Still have the hammer too!

 

 

-Justin

I had that happen to me yesterday but luckily the car didn't fall, I had it jacked up doing the rear bearings and one of my "HArbor freight" jack stands slipped. Good thing I left the jack under the car and it held, time to get some better jack stands.

 

My hammer..

 

 

 

-Justin

Wow

Hoo, boy!  That hammer is a collector's item now!!!

Holly carp. Place of honor on the mantle for the hammer!

Nicely done hammer!  Good thing that wasn't a HF special!  Those hammers will however mess up your hand if you miss and hit the shaft on its narrow.  A few roofers have lost fingers.

Wow! Too many close calls, glad y'all are safe! That hammer is something else!

 

I remember about three years ago now, I came upon a set of tires I wanted on my first Loyale. The $300 Loyale I'd picked up for a second vehicle...alt fried the ECU. Anyway, the tires were one of the many things I took from that car before scrapping her. I parked them back to back in a parking lot to do the wheel swap. Put the scissor jack under the rear diff on each car and just went for it.

The second car (trashed one) was fine, it was also empty. Mine was full of stuff and not well balanced, I guess??? Anyway, got the first wheel swapped, no problem. Came over with the second one and..."wut? This tire won't fit...hmm. Put it down, go get the old one I'd taken off. No...wait. This car is getting REALLY CLOSE TO THE PAVEMENT!". I quick stuck the old tire under the frame by the passenger door and about forty seconds later, the entire car was resting on the old tire. Jack was completely bent, and in a bad way. Fortunately I was near a shop and they were kind enough to lend me a wheeled jack to get her back up! That was the last time I used a scissor jack without a backup, even for a tire-change. (I also invested in a small floor jack).

Edited April 14, 201312 yr by man on the moon

This thread should have been "Jack Maintenance...Jack Stands...And the odd Hammer-of-life"

 

Seriously, Jackstands, and I keep the jack under with just enough pressure at the lifting point to keep it snug against the (frame, differential, etc...)

Redundancy, and overkill has saved my fuzzy beige backside on many occasion.

 

Harbor "Fright" equipment isn't all bad, but being half Japanese, I find it difficult to trust the Chinese sweat shop factories with any single piece of equipment that my life may hinge upon.

 

That Hammer needs to be enshrined.

Encase it in Lucite, lit from beneath upon a pedestal of black granite.

 

(Blessed, you are!)

 

Respectfully,

Timothy